Samsung’s edge-lit LED HDTVs are currently very popular. However, Samsung still continues to produce excellent Plasma sets. The Samsung PN58B860, for example, is its flagship Plasma model, and as such, it offers many great features that make it worth considering.
Design. The design of the Samsung PN58B860 alone is something to be liked. Contrary to the belief that LCD HDTVs are thinner than Plasmas, the PN58B860 is just as slim as its LED-lit counterparts, measuring only 1.2 inches thick at its deepest point. It sports a sleek, glossy black frame without the reddish Touch of Color many Samsung HDTVs come with, making it suitable for anyone’s taste and has a thin transparent edge that lends it the right touch of sophistication. Its matching stand swivels from side to side.
Picture. Are you looking for an HDTV that offers inky blacks, accurate colors, minimum reflections and sharp detail? Look no further. The PN58B860 offers all these. Indeed, its black levels and color accuracy are among its strong points, resulting in popping images, while its Ultra FilterBright Plus screen is as glare-free as can be, so you won’t get distracted from your viewing pleasure even in very bright environments.
Motion Resolution and Video Processing. Like other Plasmas, the PN58B860 creates great moving pictures with its 600Hz Subfield drive and its 100Hz Motion Plus dejudder processing system. Indeed, it displays various sources properly and prevents blurring so you don’t miss out on any of the action.
Interactive Suite. As a flagship model, the PN58B860 is quite expensive and to help justify its price, it is packed with a lot of interactive features. These include Yahoo widgets for news headlines, weather reports and stock market updates, as well as those for Yahoo videos, sports scores and select online games. There are also widgets for Twitter and Flickr, and access to free videos on YouTube, although access to Amazon Video on Demand would have been even better. The PN58B860 is also DLNA compliant which means you can access media files like movie clips, songs and pictures on your networked computers, plus it comes with the built-in content library found in many Samsung HDTV models.
Picture Controls. For those who like to play around with the settings of their HDTV until they achieve the perfect images, numerous controls are provided, including four adjustable picture modes that are independent per input, five color temperature presets and four aspect ratio selections. There is even a Day/Night mode, though this is reserved for professional HDTV calibrators. For the basic settings, anyone can access the on-screen menu, which remains very user-friendly.
Energy Efficiency. Although Plasma models are still lacking in this area, the PN58B860 does not consume as much power as some of its predecessors. Rather, it comes with three power saving modes and an Eco picture mode that has slightly lower light output.
Connectivity Suite. If your devices are mostly digital, you will find the connectivity suite of the Samsung PN58B860 impressive enough, but if you’re looking for analog connections, you won’t find many at the back of this HDTV, which is where most of the inputs and outputs are located because of its slim build. What you will find are four HDMI inputs all lined up together, a PC input and a component video connection which can be converted into composite. There are also two USB ports for media sharing but sadly, no S-video inputs.